Mathematical Formulation of Cooling Water Flow Rates for High Speed Continuous Slab Caster

In high speed continuous steel slab castings machine, the partially solidified strand emerging out from the bottomless mold is cooled to complete solidification by means of water sprays arranged through its metallurgical length. The cooling water flow rates are dependent on slab size, grade of steel cast, working length of mold, casting speed, water pressure, spray nozzles and their location in the strand support system of the caster. In this paper an analytical method to predict the spray cooling water flow rates is presented. A least square polynomial is found which best describes extensive data of cooling flow rates obtained from high speed continuous steel slab caster at Linz, Austria. Polynomial curves for various slab sizes, grades of steel cast and casting speeds have been determined using the actual water flow rates data and the developed least square technique. The technique developed in this paper is general and can be used for determination of cooling flow rates of any type of continuous steel casting machine.